1
Thursday morning, the second week of May.
As I walked to school from the station, I mentally reviewed my high school life so far.
“For now… I think it’s going… pretty well.”
—In the past, I was someone often called a “nice guy” by those around me.
I couldn’t deny that I deliberately acted the part.
Not because I wanted to be seen as a nice guy, though. Back then, I was just naively idealistic, a little dumber than average, and utterly repulsed by the idea of calculating personal gains in relationships.
No matter what anyone else did, I swore I would never do it.
It wasn’t about morality or playing the saint.
I never judged others for their choices, nor did I care about protecting the weak or maintaining harmony. I just stubbornly stuck to my own rule: I wouldn’t do it.
Simply because I was terrible at bringing calculation into human connections.
Scheming like “That guy’s popular, so I’ll cozy up to him” or “This one’s no fun, so let’s leave them out”—I hated even the most basic, commonplace manipulations with every fiber of my being.
—At least, back in middle school.
I know now. Looking back, a guy like that wasn’t “nice” at all—just thoughtless. Refusing to do things I didn’t want to do was nothing more than shallow avoidance. If I had at least some sense of justice, it might’ve been slightly redeemable.
Everyone else navigated relationships with calculation.
It was a necessary skill for self-preservation, not some despicable vice.
But I was just a kid waving around empty ideals, too immature to face reality. I must’ve been a nuisance to everyone around me.
Naturally, I eventually faced the consequences, prompting deep self-reflection.
I resolved to live more sensibly in high school.
…Well, that’s just a pretentious way to put it.
Realistically, I was just aiming for a “high school debut.”
—Anyway, for those reasons.
Kageyuki sou, first-year high school student, now spends his days taking on “jobs” at school.
“………”
What troubles me are the two girls named Natsuki I’ve met here.
Shiranui Natsuki.
Kimiya Natsuki.
Two girls who, in different ways, forced me to confront a certain kind of “ideal.”
Now that I’ve overcome the trauma from my childhood, I meet two people with the same name as the girl who caused it—back-to-back.
Should I call it fate’s cruel irony? Or is it weirder that I’d never met anyone else with such a common name before? Either way, it’s nothing more than a joke to anyone else.
Well, Kimiya’s in my class, but I haven’t seen Shiranui even once since school started. I’m not even sure if I’d recognize her.
Still, even in a large school like Seishinkan, we’re bound to cross paths eventually. I’m not actively searching for her, but I am looking forward to that moment.
I’d love to learn from her genius adaptability.
—Current time: 7:30 AM. Over an hour left before homeroom.
Golden Week had ended, and the clear morning sky hinted at the summer heat to come.
The empty streets made for an easy walk.
I always arrived at school early, but rarely this early. If it’s this pleasant, maybe I should start coming at this time every day—lost in that thought, I reached the school gates.
“Hmm… what now?”
Changing into my indoor shoes at the entrance, I considered how to spend the time until homeroom.
Might as well make it meaningful—but nothing came to mind.
If only there was some “job” to do, as usual. Oh well. Might as well head to the classroom.
“Oh, Sou-san, you’re early.”
“Whoa—!”
Startled by the sudden voice behind me, I turned around.
Standing right there was a girl, as if she’d appeared out of thin air.
“Y-You scared me… didn’t see you there, Kimiya. Morning.”
“Good morning, Sou-san.”
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Dressed in a pristine, well-fitted uniform, she was about a head shorter than me.
A short, jet-black bob framed her face—my classmate, Kimiya Natsuki—tilted her head slightly, smiling up at me.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. Were you deep in thought?”
“Nah, just… got here way too early, so I was figuring out how to kill time. My bad, standing in front of the shoe lockers like an idiot.”
“Not at all. I’m happy to run into you this early! Early birds get the worm, right?”
As she retrieved her own indoor shoes, Kimiya casually said something that would make anyone blush.
We only met after starting school here, but her overwhelmingly friendly attitude from the very beginning sometimes made me misinterpret things. Since she’s like this with everyone, I’ve managed to avoid getting burned—but honestly, it’s bad for my heart.
“You’re early too—morning club practice or something?”
Trying to mask my embarrassment, I asked.
Her athleticism was apparently well-known since middle school, and during April, multiple sports clubs had tried recruiting her. Due to family reasons—or maybe personal principles—she didn’t join any officially, but she still lent her skills to a few teams.
So I assumed she was here early to help out, but she shook her head.
“No, not today. Not that anyone’s asked me to join morning practices anyway.”
“Oh, really? …Well, makes sense.”
Truth be told, the sports clubs here weren’t particularly high-level.
Occasionally, a sudden genius would emerge and dominate individual competitions, but team events rarely advanced past the regional stage.
On the other hand, several cultural clubs had gained national recognition.
“But you’re always early… guess this is your usual time?”
Even though I arrived early too, I’d never beaten Kimiya to school.
She was always first. I was second.
So it wasn’t unusual for us to talk in the empty morning classroom.
“Isn’t waking up this early rough?”
“Not when you gain something from it. Today was worth it.”
“Oh? Something good happen?”
“It did. —Getting to talk to you this early, Sou-san.”
She grinned, her smile sweet enough to melt hearts.
Even though she was like this with everyone, the way she acted toward me felt dangerously friendly.
I wish she’d stop saying things that could easily mislead a healthy teenage boy.
“Well then, why don’t we walk to class together for once? An empty classroom has its own charm.”
Cheerfully swaying her shoulders, Kimiya led the way into the school building.
First stop: the staff room. The earliest students had to pick up the classroom key.
We climbed the stairs and walked down the hallway.
Just as we reached the entrance, a teacher stood there—grinning like he’d hit the jackpot.
“Perfect timing. My beloved students, just who I wanted to see.”
“…Morning, Hiyama-sensei. Starting the day with ominous words, I see.”
Our homeroom teacher’s greeting sent a shiver down my spine.
But ignoring him wasn’t an option, so I reluctantly approached.
“Need something, Hiyama-sensei?”
“Well… Kimiya-kun, Kageyuki-kun. Either of you mind doing me a favor?”
No guy could just say “Leave it to Kimiya” here. I raised a hand.
“What do you need?”
“Right. —Follow me.”
Led by Hiyama, we moved to a corner of the staff room.
Hiyama Yuuichirou, our homeroom teacher, was a relatively young male teacher in his thirties.
His trademark was a lab coat and delicate glasses, and he was apparently an alumnus of this school. Thanks to that, he bragged about having connections everywhere despite being junior faculty.
He had a lax personality, but in a good way—not strict, and flexible with rules. In that sense, he was easy to get along with.
With his usual grin, he spoke.
“I’d have preferred to ask Kimiya-kun, but I’ll humor the young man’s desire to look cool in front of a girl. I am an understanding teacher, after all.”
“A truly understanding teacher wouldn’t say that out loud…”
I can’t help but feel this isn’t the attitude someone should have when asking for a favor.
Well, I suppose that’s just part of Hiyama-sensei’s charm as a teacher. It’s nice that he doesn’t put up walls.
Deepening his meaningless, suspicious-looking smile, Hiyama continued.
“No, I simply thought Kageyuki-kun might not be familiar with the school layout yet. In that sense, I believed the more experienced Kimiya-kun would be better suited. Though I suppose this could be a good opportunity for Kageyuki-kun.”
“School layout…? What are you talking about?”
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